31 Mar 2014

Eat This: Caesar Green Beans

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Caesar Green Beans

One of my favorite things in the world of food is Caesar dressing.  The tanginess and saltiness and creaminess just makes me salivate and want to dip everything I have in front of me – bread, croutons, crackers, vegetables, meat, salad (of course), in it.  Just dump the contents of the bottle in a large bowl and let me dig in!  I wanted to liven up some frozen green beans and thought this would be the perfect side dish.  I could have easily eaten the whole dish!

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Caesar Green Beans
Author: 
Recipe type: Side Dish
Cuisine: Vegetables
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 3-4
 
Green beans with a delicious sauce
Ingredients
  • 1 bag frozen whole green beans
  • 1 T unsalted butter
  • 2 T Caesar salad dressing
  • s/p to taste
  • 1 T sliced toasted almonds
  • 2 T freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Cook green beans according to directions package.
  2. Drain.
  3. In a pan, melt the butter. Stir in the dressing and green beans until all combined.
  4. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. Top with almonds and cheese.
  6. Devour.
 

28 Mar 2014

Eat This: Banana Pancake Oats

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banana pancake oats

This breakfast reminds of two of my favorite morning meals.  Pancakes at Guglhupf in Durham, NC.  And oats in the Bay Area of California with my Dad.  Let me tell you about them.

There is a little bakery/café in the central part of Durham that I still crave their pancakes.  Ask my husband: they serve the best most amazing, perfect textured pancakes EVER.  I wish I could get their recipe.  The pancake plate comes with apples, butter, and syrup.  At most restaurants, I have to ask my server for my syrup because the pancakes just need help.  I rarely have ever used all the syrup at Guglhupf.  They don’t need any more.  I can devour the plate and be completely satisfied by the rich goodness that I inhale on my fork.  Then I want to go home and recreate them – but have yet been able to.  My husband is sitting here beside me making up an ode de Guglhupf.  Funny man I live life with.

The Bay Area of California.  With so much going on – its a place I’ve only been to once but would love to explore more of – and most directly north of there in the wine country of Napa.  But as I look at pictures of the Bridge and the Bay, it pulls me and calls me to travel there to explore all of its goodness.  One such goodness is the breakfast I had. I don’t remember where we went, but the oats were amazing.  This was really before I started eating oats on a regular basis.  I grew up a Life Cereal girl.  A whole tray of goodies came out with a big steaming bowl of oats.  Bananas, raisins, syrup, brown sugar, all to create your own bowl of goodness.  I thought to myself oatmeal could be fun!

Well, thinking about these two delicious breakfasts helped me create this mornings bowl of oats.  Oats are a healthy and inexpensive way to feed your whole family in the morning.  This recipe serve 2.5 (Eli doesn’t eat quite a whole bowl yet.)

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Banana Pancake Oats
Author: 
Recipe type: Breakast
Cuisine: Oats
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 3
 
Banans, brown sugar, oats, and syrup - yummy concoction for breakfast
Ingredients
  • 1⅓ cup whole oats
  • 1⅓ whole milk
  • ¼ cup water
  • pinch of kosher salt
  • 2 T brown sugar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon sugar
  • ½ banana, pureed
  • 1 banana
  • Maple Syrup
  • Chopped pecans, optional
Instructions
  1. In a medium sauce pan, bring the oats, milk, and water to a boil and let cook until done.
  2. Halfway through cooking, add in the salt, cinnamon sugar, brown sugar, and pureed banana.
  3. When done, spoon into bowls, top with sliced bananas and maple syrup. If desired, add chopped nuts.
 

 

27 Mar 2014

Eat This: Baked Pizza Chicken

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baked pizza chicken

Garlic.  Tomato.  Cheese.  Crust.  Italian Sausage.  Onions.  Gooey-stringy.  Texture.  Taste.  Comfort.

All of the above give you a snapshot into why I love pizza.  What I don’t love about pizza: the way it makes me feel.  I can’t eat it as much anymore and I will save the rarities for grace pizza.

I still love the flavors of pizza so I want to incorporate those flavors into a more healthy dish for my family.  This was gobbled up by my men and me one evening for dinner.

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Baked Pizza Chicken
Author: 
Recipe type: Dinner
Cuisine: Chicken
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
An easy baked chicken dish with all the flavors of pizza.
Ingredients
  • 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 10 slices pepperoni
  • ½ cup full fat ricotta cheese
  • 1 cup pizza sauce
  • 1 cup Italian cheese
  • 1 T Italian seasonings
  • 8 oz angel hair pasta
Instructions
  1. In an oven-safe dish, spray or grease the bottom.
  2. Place your chicken in it.
  3. Season both sides of your chicken with salt and pepper and italan seasonings.
  4. Smear ricotta cheese over both pieces of chicken.
  5. Layer the pepperoni over the top of the ricotta cheese.
  6. Pour the pizza sauce over the top of the entire dish.
  7. Top with the Italian cheese.
  8. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes or until chicken is done (will depend on how thick your chicken breasts are).
  9. In the meantime, cook angel hair (or any other pasta) according to package directions.
  10. When chicken is done, slice on the diagonal and layer on top of the noodles.
  11. Serve with salad or garlic bread.
 

17 Mar 2014

What’s Eatin?

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What's Eatin?

I did very well with the lower budget last week, so here we are again.  Meal planning doesn’t include as much fresh fruits and vegetables because they are expensive here in the middle of the country, but we make due with what we can get.  This week, its bananas and cuties!

Monday: Its Saint Patrick’s Day so in honor of that celebration: Dinty Moore Shepherd’s Pie and Lucky Charms Cereal Bars.

lucky charms cereal bars

Tuesday: As part of the Influenster Nation I got a coupon for Annie’s Homegrown Family Meals and chose the Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese.  Will be having that with chicken tenderloins and frozen veggies.

Wednesday: Heather’s Garlic Rice with stir fry

Thursday: Pumpkin Soup with bread

Friday: Italian Sausage spaghetti with a sweet friend.

Saturday: Heading to Memphis to hang out with some NC friends and packing a picnic lunch.  Late homecoming dinner with pizza from Marcos (with coupon).

Sunday: Leftovers

16 Mar 2014

Eat This: Spicy 3 Cheese Macaroni and Cheese

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3 cheese mac

Macaroni and Cheese will live on in my taste buds as one of the best foods in the world.  Blue box or baked – if there is mac and cheese at a table, you can assure yourself that I will have some on my plate.

So, looking through my pantry and fridge this afternoon, I made up this one to take to community group tonight.  Enjoy it – and long live macaroni and cheese!

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Spicy 3 Cheese Mac
Author: 
Recipe type: Main Dish
Cuisine: Comfort, Pasta
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6
 
Creamy macaroni and cheese sure to please
Ingredients
  • 8 oz elbow macaroni
  • 6 T unsalted butter
  • 3 T flour
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1 block cream cheese
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1 T stone ground mustard
  • kosher salt
  • pepper
  • ½ cup uncooked oats or wheat bread crumbs,
  • ¼ tsp sage
  • ¼ tsp oregano
  • ¾ cup Italian cheese blend
  • 2 T butter, chopped
Instructions
  1. Bring water to boil for pasta - include olive oil and salt to flavor water. Cook until done - about 8 minutes.
  2. In another pan, heat butter until melted. Add in flour and stir until combined about 2 minutes. Add in milk and bring to a boil.
  3. Stir in cream cheese and cheddar cheese and mustard. Then add in cooked pasta.
  4. Place in greased casserole.
  5. Top with Italian cheese.
  6. Top with oats (crushed in food processor) and seasonings.
  7. Dot with butter.
  8. Cook uncovered at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until brown and melted gooeyness.
 

12 Mar 2014

Eat This: Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Mini Cups

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Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Mini Cups

Every time I open my fridge, I see this bowl of Brown Eyed Baker’s salted caramel sauce staring me in the face.  Its like its begging me to make something with it, or just dig in with a spoon.  That’s what spoons are good for, right?  Eating caramel!

While I was visiting a local bakery on Friday (interview and photos coming soon), I was inspired to use it in a different way.  That different way came about in my kitchen today.  Husband ate them – right out of the oven, before the caramel even had time to set!  They are that good.

Here are two important criteria to remember when baking these: quality contents produce quality baked goods.  The two stars of these mini cups are the salted caramel and the chocolate.  I used a Dutch bittersweet chocolate for some of the chocolate in these cups and then the homemade salted caramel.  Taste matters when baking – not just precision!

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Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Mini Cups
Author: 
Recipe type: Cookie
Cuisine: Dessert
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 24
 
Caramel and chocolate - any complaints?
Ingredients
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • ½ cup whole oats
  • 2 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 3 oz bittersweet chocolate (I used Droste Dutch chocolate)
  • Salted caramel sauce (I use the one on Brown Eyed Baker)
Instructions
  1. Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla. Cream until smooth. Add dry ingredients then fold in chocolate and oats.
  2. Fill mini baking cups with one scoop - about 24-36 cookies.
  3. Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes.
  4. When you take them out immediately mash down the top to form a little holder for the caramel.
  5. Add a half teaspoon to the top. It will melt and then harden up as cookie cools.
  6. Enjoy with a tall glass of milk and a good book. Share if possible.
 

10 Mar 2014

What’s Eatin?

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What's Eatin?

I’m so thankful that we have the means to provide simple meals for our family.  Thankful for how the Lord provides for us each week!

Monday: these leftover beans and jiffy corn muffins (those are so worth the fifty cent they are!)

Tuesday: Taco Tuesday will be black bean quesadillas

Wednesday: A potato and meat layer dish from a church cookbook I have.  I’ll share the recipe if its share worthy.

Thursday: we are having dinner at a sweet family’s house.

Friday: Brinner – corn pancakes and eggs!

Saturday: spaghetti.  simple and classic meal that can’t be beat!

What are you cooking this week?

 

7 Mar 2014

Eat This: White Beans & Greens with Fried Egg and Avocado

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white beans

At the end of a long week I just want quiet, slippers, a few NCIS episodes, my mister, the boys asleep, and a bowl of comfort food.  Yes, I said a bowl.  I think most comfort foods are probably comfort foods because they are bowl worthy.  Bowl worthy: sitting cross-legged on a roomy couch, flannels on, slippers kicked up, wrapped in a blanket, holding a bowl filled with warm food you eat with a spoon.

Delicacies that you could easily put in this category: paella, macaroni and cheese, chicken and rice, or this bowl of white beans with all the extras.  I’m very thankful for the beautiful photography of Jessica over at How Sweet Eats for making a bowl of legumes look exciting.  I wanted to try it.  Knowing me, I tweaked it and added some of my own.  People have asked if it turned out well and I said yes – grab a spoon!

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White Beans & Greens with Fried Egg and Avocado
Author: 
Recipe type: Beans
Cuisine: Dinner
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 8
 
Classy legumes filled with other comforting tastes
Ingredients
  • ¼ lb bacon, chopped
  • ½ large onion, diced
  • ¾ tsp red pepper flakes
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • ¾ tsp black pepper
  • ¼ tsp sweet Spanish paprika
  • 1 box chicken broth
  • water to cover the beans
  • 1 lb great northern beans (soaked overnight)
  • 3 parmesan cheese rinds, diced
  • 1 bunch kale, chopped
  • 1 bunch spinach, chopped (just the leaves)
Instructions
  1. In a big pot, fry up the bacon
  2. Saute onions in bacon grease
  3. Add spices and sauté for a few minutes until aromatic
  4. Add in broth, water, and beans and parmesan rinds
  5. Bring to boil, cover, and simmer until beans are done, about 80 minutes.
  6. Take a potato masher and mash some of the beans. Add in the greens and cook for about another 15 minutes with the lid off.
  7. Fry an egg. Chop and avocado. Add them to the top of a big steaming bowl of beans.
Two years ago: Two New Journeys

3 Mar 2014

Eat This: Guac that Rocks

by | posted in: food, Uncategorized | 0

Guacamole

I’m watching The Chew right now and they are doing a Tex-Mex party show with a vignette revolving the avocado. I have not always been an avocado fan. There was a time when I wouldn’t eat it. I don’t know when that changed, but believe me, my husband knows there are three favorite foods in my brain:

Delicious baked gooey macaroni and cheese (blue box will do in a pinch, but I really want the gooey stuff).

A delicious steak. This means the freshest piece of meat, cooked medium, and preferably cooked either by my husband (in house) or my brother (on the grill).

And guacamole. Not fancy quac – 5 in gredient guac. That’s all you need to make the perfect guacamole.

Bring in one of the best food blogs around – Jenna at EatLiveRun and the Super Bowl. Husband and I chose to watch the game at home this year and then I forgot about the time change and it was a boring game. The best part of the whole evening was the guacamole.

What you need:
perfectly ripe avocados. These are hard to find. Wal-Mart always lets me down even though they are cheap. Mostly I find them at Kroger or Whole Foods. If you are going to use them ASAP – then you want them with a slight give to them. Just pushable. If you are going to use them tomorrow = then buy them firm. You do not want them mushy. They will be brown. Listen…do NOT buy them MUSHY!
Kosher or Sea Salt. Don’t use the table salt. How long has your table salt been on your table. Salt loses its flavor. Use kosher salt or sea salt. It brings out the amazing buttery goodness of the avocado.
Limes. Don’t buy the lime juice in a bottle. Just go buy little limes that have juice in them. You can have liven your finished product up with some of the lime zest. You don’t get that from a bottle.
Cilantro. Bright fresh green cilantro. A little goes a long way. You can always add more.
Red Onion.  Same with the cilantro – you don’t want a lot. You want the main star to be the avocado, not the red onion.

3 Mar 2014

What’s Eatin’?

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What's Eatin?

What to do when the weather prevents you from getting to the grocery store like you had planned?  Alter your menu for the week!

I’ve talked before about cutting back on our family’s food budget, so I’m looking forward to the challenge.  My husband works hard to provide for our family.  I want to be able to make nice meals for when we have company, showing the extravagant hospitality of our loving Father (not to put forth rich food, but not wanting just to slap something together either), and I want to make healthy but not expensive meals for our family.

Monday: Last night was the storm of sleet.  So, we are unable to get out to the grocery store today.  So, going with what we have here at the house.  Chicken Salad salads and Heath Bar Blondies by ELR.

Tuesday: We are going to Longhorn’s with a gift card from friends.  Can’t wait for a date night!

Wednesday: This delicious parmesan white bean stew from How Sweet It Is.

Thursday: Turkey Bacon, Pancakes for brinner.

Friday: I’m taking dinner to my friend and her family and the main part will be this Italian Chicken and Rice casserole – slightly tweaked.  We’ll see how the finished product turns out.

Saturday: we will for sure have some leftovers that we will be eating

Sunday: again, leftovers or sandwiches or brinner or brunch.